The grand re-opening? Just 20 American tourists to arrive in Phuket on July 9

[kiwikeith]

7 hours ago, smedly said:

I suspect the 20 from USA are not tourists at all but expats who have been vaccinated and have been waiting for an easy way to return to their homes in Thailand - no real surprise is it

You forgot CNN were coming, that would probably make up for 20.

As Far as costs are concerned, from NZ, its expensive air fares approx 3 k plus return, and quarantine on return 3500 NZ, compulsory vaccinated or not. 

 

Then add the Thai costs and the boring conditions that will make the trip so exciting. 

 

I wonder how many bars will open for this great influx.??? 

[ThailandRyan]

1 minute ago, connda said:

Well they are.  Cacun, La Paz, Cozumel - Mexican beaches you can go to with no quarantine hassle and regulatory nonsense, and where you can drink a beer with friends without getting arrested.

Exactly, that's where many of my former co-workers are vacationing at now including Hawaii.

[connda]

3 hours ago, dennnis said:

Not to mention the welcoming I got from the suvarnabhumi immigration. Didn't want to stamp me in on the grounds that I stay too long in Thailand before. 

The double digit number of arrivals will be met with contempt as well. 

Welcome to <Sandbox> Thailand
(20 tourist queued in line)
<sour face; grimace>  "Why you come.  Why you want to stay.  You break Thai law for sure.  You come to Thailand before.  We no want you.  Go home!!!"

Ok. Sure.

(Later the night on the return flight)
<Dear FB friends.  Don't come to Thailand ever.  Let me tell you of my experience as soon as I arrived at the airport with the first dour looking Thai official I met.......>
 

[soalbundy]

5 hours ago, Justgrazing said:

 

 

Still not getting it are they .. 

 

 

Hahaha .. yea whatever .. 

This much maligned core group of tourists aren't too eager methinks. Whatever happened to the 'new deal', Chinese and Indian big spenders?

[newnative]

    All of these totally ridiculous 'schemes' are destined to fail miserably.  What idiot thought up 1 +2+4+Q=unworkable.  Or whatever the hell it is?  Here's a hint.  If you need to have it tattooed on your arm to remember, think again.  Too complicated.  Tourists want to arrive and then do whatever they want without thinking is this 2 or 4 or Q now?  Huh?  Back to the drawing board.  20 tourists is about right with these 'schemes'.  

[WingFat]

8 hours ago, smedly said:

I suspect the 20 from USA are not tourists at all but expats who have been vaccinated and have been waiting for an easy way to return to their homes in Thailand - no real surprise is it

Another possibility is many states in the US have enacted early release from prison programs for inmates who committed various lower level crimes. They deserve a restful respite...(sarcasm)

[lavender19]

Dreaming again

[AnnieSeek]

They've put so many restrictions against domestic tourists - but they could have made up these numbers. 

[sead]

I guess everyone knows the governments precision planning. I guess they have themselves to blame that no one believes anything this Disney government says or plans. 

[Sean60]

I wish I new how to write incompetent in Thai!!

[PEE TEE]

They must have a good reason to come back partners ,property etc.. if not they would be better off investing in sunbeds . But hey its a good way to open the back door for going back to other parts of Thailand 

[ThaiFelix]

6 hours ago, zhounan said:

Maybe they will spend 500.000 Baht per person.

Couldnt they just post the money instead ????

[ThaiFelix]

1 hour ago, Sydebolle said:

I am surprised, that not more than 20 come; after all those goodies like USD 1/roomnight, all those privileges and the gracious permit to set foot on the promised land by the chosen people of smiles ..........

Nothing learnt; nothing understood! 

Think of the positive side.............its only 20 TM30's and TM7's to process ????

[Skeptic7]

6 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

Wow !

Phuket seems to be bottom of the heap for Tourists.

You would think with all the C##p then Americans have been through with this awful Covid, they would be busting to get away to the Sun for a few weeks.

Maybe they are getting away, just not to Phuket. 

Why? America has beautiful beaches, plenty of sun, awesome mountains, forests and cities and for the most part mostly OPEN.

 

When I was still there last year drove thru 7 states unimpeded and spent time in all. In October flew to Las Vegas and dined out and drank beer in bars and casinos. Then on to the Hoover Dam, which was OPEN, then on to The Grand Canyon, which OPEN.

 

Plenty to do in USA and freedom to do it. Why come to Lie-land the Military State of stupidity??? Can't swim in pools or sea,, can't go to a bar, can't even have a beer or glass of wine with dinner...IF restaurants are even open. Have to wear face gear in your own vehicles with own family members. 

 

Why on earth would anyone want to come here??? 

Edited June 2, 2021 by Skeptic7

[joecoolfrog]

3 hours ago, RobMuir said:

 

Yes world leaders.

 

610,000 dead.

34 million infected.

And the US learned lessons , got rid of its incompetent President , got real on mass testing and vaccinations , now its recovering fast.

As for Thailand.....

[nattaya09]

Place a livestream at HKT arrivals to capture the hordes

[ChipButty]

Why Americans come to Thailand is beyond me you have everything you need easy to get anywhere I often think I should have gone west instead of east was it the lure of the Hoy?

[KhunMorris]

An update, as expected...

 

That said, there were a couple of disquieting but yet-to-be-confirmed developments that could temper travel demand. They are:

 

i) A proposal by the Public Health Ministry to increase the mandatory stay in Phuket from 7 to 14 days. This means that a vaccinated traveller in Phuket under the auspices of the Sandbox must stay in a SHA-certified hotel/resort in Phuket for a minimum of 14 days before they may travel to other parts of Thailand; and

 

ii) "Area Quarantine": instead of allowing vaccinated travellers the freedom to roam around Phuket as per the current plan, he could be confined to the area where he is staying. For example, if he is staying in a hotel in Patong sub-district, he would have to remain in Patong sub-district for the duration of his stay. If he wants to travel to other parts of Phuket, he may only do so via "sealed routes".

 

All this is still basically a work-in-progress. The briefing was bereft of details.

 

Source:  Facebook Group: Phuket Sandbox - “Better Phuket” By I Asia Thailand

 

Sincerely

 

MORRIS

Muay Thai Trained - Chiang Mai

Edited June 2, 2021 by KhunMorris

[impulse]

6 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

Wow !

Phuket seems to be bottom of the heap for Tourists.

You would think with all the C##p then Americans have been through with this awful Covid, they would be busting to get away to the Sun for a few weeks.

Maybe they are getting away, just not to Phuket. 

 

Americans wouldn't be the target demographic anyway.  Too many tropical paradises within a 2-4 hour flight of the USA to spend a 60 hour roundtrip (with layovers) to get to Thailand.  Double so if you factor in the risk that something will change between now and wheels up.  Plus, some of the cruise lines are opening back up.

 

The numbers are going to come from north of Thailand.

[sambum]

1 hour ago, connda said:

I wonder how long it will take these fools to get a clue that no one is coming with the restrictions in place.
"Why farang laugh?"  ????

 

They really have no idea, do they?

[Rhacsyn]

If any of this goes ahead, why target US, Europe etc at this moment in time with all the issues, especially for return to home. If TAT want to pay me a fee I would market for them in the UAE, as one example, where it is currently 44C daily and no rain for sure.

 

Population around 10million, of which 1.2 million are Western, East Asian or African  (UK 240,000, China 200,000, South African 80,000, USA 50,000, Australian 16,000..). Six hour flight and no restrictions, other than negative Covid pcr test prior return. Would that not make a little sense?

[Toto G]

I wrote this on a previous YT comment;  "The allure of pre C19 Thailand was the 'ease of accessibility into Thailand'. No COB, no health checks and/or proof of the likes, no vaccine requirements, no quarantine etc - understand all these requirements cost the traveler TIME, MONEY and NERVES. Why bother? Currently, It's just not worth the visit! The reality, Thailand will not recover (or recover very slowly) until all or most requirements associated and bureaucratic red-tape with C19 are lifted. The high-end travelers, the expat-mongers, Digital nomads, (and yes) YT bloggers are a tiny slice of the pie - they appear have the larger voice, but do not pay the bills."

[tinca tinca]

wow so three cesnas are arriving with all these tourists ????!!!!!

[kimamey]

10 hours ago, smedly said:

I suspect the 20 from USA are not tourists at all but expats who have been vaccinated and have been waiting for an easy way to return to their homes in Thailand - no real surprise is it

That's quite possible but then that's just as good or possibly better than tourists who will go home again. It's how 'm planning to return.

 

There's a couple of problems I can see in the story. Firstly it says the first arrivals will include  20 Americans. Whilst it's good they are coming the number is meaningless as it doesn't tell you how many in total. It could be 20 Americans, 2 Chinese and a Korean or it could be 20 Americans and 500,000 from other countries.

 

Secondly.  Yutthasak also said that the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) have still got to ratify the details that will allow double dose vaccinated tourists to enter Thailand. 

 

They need to sort out the rules before they can expect people to commit to arriving. I want to come but I don't want to make plans before I know what rules I'm planning around. Do I have to fly direct into Phuket or can I transfer through BKK? If not why not. Is it true that my wife can join me either after getting both shots of a vaccine or after testing negative within 7 days before arriving. What can we do whilst we are there?

 

All these factors are at various stages of being confirmed but so many are just some official getting their time in front of the media rather than official rules.

 

I think what they need is someone in charge who at some point has had to plan a trip as an ordinary person rather than just being so important they can wander through a Thai airport with everyone catering to their needs and wants.

Edited June 2, 2021 by kimamey

[JJNThailand]

7 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

Wow !

Phuket seems to be bottom of the heap for Tourists.

You would think with all the C##p then Americans have been through with this awful Covid, they would be busting to get away to the Sun for a few weeks.

Maybe they are getting away, just not to Phuket. 

 

Yeah, no "sun" in the US.  Especially this time of the year! 555  (spoiler - the entire country is sunny, including Alaska.)

 

No need to travel and deal with other countries quarantines or take chances with other covid variants.  ie Alpha, Beta, Gama... mickey, mouse...

 

[bwpage3]

8 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

Wow !

Phuket seems to be bottom of the heap for Tourists.

You would think with all the C##p then Americans have been through with this awful Covid, they would be busting to get away to the Sun for a few weeks.

Maybe they are getting away, just not to Phuket. 

America is very, very close to the Caribbean Islands.

 

We can fly round trip to Aruba from Florida for <US$300 and takes only 2:10 minutes.

 

Why travel all the way to Thailand when every different govt group is reporting something different and most of the places are closed? Or the rules can change day by day?

 

 

 

 

Edited June 2, 2021 by bwpage3

[PDP11]

I'm one of those people that wonder how there can even be 20 Americans booked. Although Thai embassies and consulates around the world have (probably) heard about this plan, there are zero guidelines available and there is no way to get a CoE for this scheme anytime soon. Count minimum a few weeks once guidelines are provided for the embassies / consulates to be ready, followed by a few weeks processing time for the first CoE (plus whatever additional restrictions the Phuket & Thai governments puts in place). It is already too late to have people arriving in early to mid July.

 

On top of this, nobody knows which hotels are approved for the sandbox. You can pick a hotel at random and make a reservation (hopefully without a deposit required) hoping that your choice will be on the list. Beyond that, the only thing I think you can take care of now is a (hopefully refundable) flight reservation.

 

Bottom line, the governments of Phuket and Thailand are already a month or two behind if they really want July 1 to happen. 

[SteveB2]

Back in 2019 when Thailand last had a half decent tourism year, the TAT listed American tourists as 0.46% of their yearly total.

So, 20 Americans out of 2,336 works out at 0.86% - which is brilliant. Honest.

 

Perhaps the headline should be re-written as 'twice as many American tourists arrive as normal during Thailand's post COVID pandemic openning...' ???? 

[DFPhuket]

I'm an American in the US now and have a ticket to arrive in Phuket July 3 on Qatar (which is fully changeable if needed). There is no way that Thai officialdom knows when and if this American is arriving since I haven't/can't apply for a COE. I really wish they wouldn't make up numbers out of the air. 

[DUNROAMIN]

10 hours ago, pattjock said:

There will probably be no tourists at all until everything has been opened for at least a month. Who would risk going there if everything could be closed?

 

Even then this government way of doing things, changing rules without even a days warning, will make tourists think twice before booking a trip.

 

Lets be realistic here, try 6 months or more.